Demon

Starred review from April 4, 2022
The 1995 murder of an epileptic and learning disabled 12-year-old boy by two classmates in Ussalthwaite, an outwardly idyllic North Yorkshire village, drives Wesolowski’s exceptional if horrifying sixth installment in his Six Stories series (after Deity). Almost three decades later, true crime podcaster Scott King presents the harrowing perspectives of six different individuals on the murder. These podcasts, which anger the public and bring King negative media attention because he seems too sympathetic to the so-called Demonic Duo, are interspersed with poignant letters from Danny Greenwell, one of the duo, convicted and released in 2002 with lifelong anonymity, to his mother whom he loved then lost to apparent suicide. The six accounts gradually reveal there’s an eerie sense of “something wrong” with the town, as Wesolowski explores the power of gossip, hints of supernatural possession, outrage spawned by guilt, and the human tendency to reject those who “don’t fit.” In so doing, he casts a dramatic light on the shortcomings of contemporary British society. At the start, the author fittingly warns: “fictional violence against children and animals... may cause some readers distress or upset.” Those with strong stomachs will best appreciate this one. Agent: Sandra Sawicka, Marjacq (U.K.).